Clearpool has proposed expanding its institutional lending products to the XRP Ledger while replacing CPOOL with CLEAR through a 1:1 token migration and treasury recapitalization.
Summary
- 70% of CLEAR’s initial allocation would fund a 1:1 migration for existing CPOOL holders.
- Clearpool plans to build credit products around XRPL’s proposed vault and lending standards.
- Ripple has committed capital to support yield products denominated in XRP and RLUSD.
- 50% of protocol fees would finance open-market CLEAR buybacks and permanent token burns.
Clearpool plans institutional credit products on XRPL
Clearpool said in its governance proposal that the expansion represents the protocol’s “next growth phase,” combining a move to the XRP Ledger with the proposed replacement of CPOOL by CLEAR. Existing CPOOL holders would receive the new token at a one-to-one ratio if the proposal passes.
Rather than treating the token change as a standalone rebrand, the protocol tied it to plans for institutional credit markets on XRPL. Clearpool identified the ledger’s operating history and what it described as an underused institutional lending market as reasons for selecting the network.
“XRPL is one of the most established networks, with institutional credit still largely untapped,” Clearpool said.
Under the proposed structure, Clearpool would develop credit products that use the XRP Ledger to manage lending transactions and yield opportunities. The protocol said new users could receive CLEAR for providing capital, while incentives currently paid in CPOOL would move to the replacement token.
At the center of the expansion are two proposed XRPL standards: Single Asset Vaults, known as XLS-65, and the Lending Protocol, identified as XLS-66. Clearpool described the pair as “native, institutional-grade credit rails” that could support lending products directly on the ledger.
Single Asset Vaults would allow funds from several participants to be pooled under defined management rules. XLS-66 would use liquidity from those vaults to issue, service and repay fixed-term loans, while participating institutions would assess borrowers and set credit terms outside the blockchain.
“The infrastructure for institutional credit is here. We intend to be the layer that runs on it,” the company said.
Mainnet use still depends on the XRPL amendment process. An institutional RLUSD credit fund announced in August was being tested on a development network because XLS-65 and XLS-66 had not completed the validator approval process at the time.
Ripple backing connects XRP and RLUSD to lending
Ripple has committed investment toward Clearpool products that would offer yield opportunities using XRP and Ripple USD, according to the proposal. No amount was disclosed for the investment cited in the document.
The commitment builds on an earlier arrangement involving Ripple, Clearpool and Cicada Partners. Under that model, the fund would provide RLUSD-denominated working-capital loans to fintech and payment companies, with approved borrowers receiving and repaying funds in the stablecoin.
Cicada would source borrowers, set loan terms, and manage credit risk, while Clearpool would supply the infrastructure for creating and operating the credit pools. Ripple would join the fund as a limited partner on the same terms as other investors without guaranteeing losses.
Using RLUSD as the loan asset would separate the stablecoin’s role from XRP’s network function. RLUSD would move between lenders and borrowers, while XRP would continue to pay transaction fees and support reserve requirements for accounts on the ledger.
The lending model would also differ from many DeFi protocols that require borrowers to deposit more collateral than they borrow. Under XLS-66, approved institutions could arrange fixed-term credit after conducting borrower reviews off-chain, with the ledger recording and managing the resulting loan.
Clearpool said its proposed XRPL expansion would build on the ledger’s vault and lending tools once they become available. Until validator approval is secured, however, products that rely on the native standards cannot operate on the main network.
CPOOL holders would receive 70% of CLEAR supply
Alongside the XRPL plan, Clearpool has proposed recapitalizing its treasury because 99% of CPOOL’s supply has vested and reserves set aside for growth have been used. The protocol said additional resources are needed to fund development, attract capital, and support adoption.
Existing holders would receive 70% of the new CLEAR allocation through the one-to-one migration. Another 10% would go to the ecosystem, 15% to the treasury, and 5% to contributors.
At migration, the proposal would raise the token supply from the current 1 billion CPOOL to 1.125 billion CLEAR. A planned unlock schedule would increase circulating CLEAR supply to 1.428 billion over three years.
The extra tokens would therefore not enter circulation at once. Distribution would follow the proposed vesting schedule, while current holders would receive their migration allocation based on the amount of CPOOL they own.
Clearpool also proposed directing half of all protocol fees toward buying CLEAR on the open market. Tokens purchased through the program would be permanently burned, reducing supply as the protocol collects fees from its products.
Both the new allocation and buyback mechanism remain subject to governance approval. The proposal does not make the CPOOL-to-CLEAR conversion automatic before tokenholders vote.
RLUSD adds a New York-regulated settlement asset
For U.S. users and institutions, RLUSD provides a regulated dollar settlement component within the planned lending system. Standard Custody & Trust Company, a Ripple subsidiary, issues the stablecoin under a limited-purpose trust charter supervised by the New York State Department of Financial Services.
Ripple says RLUSD is backed by cash and permitted cash equivalents kept in segregated reserve accounts. Eligible reserve assets include short-term U.S. Treasury bills, government money market funds, overnight repurchase agreements, and bank deposits.
The stablecoin crossed $2 billion in market value in August, less than two years after its December 2024 launch. Around the time of the milestone, approximately $963 million of RLUSD was issued on XRPL, and about $1.05 billion was on Ethereum.
Because RLUSD is designed to stay near $1, growth in its market capitalization mainly tracks new token issuance rather than price gains. Clearpool’s proposal would give the stablecoin another role as a lending and settlement asset if its planned XRPL products reach the main network.
The governance process began with a proposal on Snapshot. Clearpool has provided a 14-day community discussion period before the matter proceeds to a tokenholder vote.
